Understanding No. 1 & No. 2 Pencils: The Complete Guide (2024)

FAQs

What's the difference between #1 and #2 pencils? ›

1 Pencil (B Grade): Higher in graphite, softer, prone to smudging, and ideal for artistic or bold writing. No. 2 Pencil (HB Grade): A balanced mix of graphite and clay, offering versatility for writing and drawing, making it a popular choice for schools and offices.

The higher the number, the harder the lead and, therefore, the lighter your mark will be. For example, a “2H” means that your pencil has a hard lead which makes it suitable for drawing light lines or writing lightly. On the other hand, if you want bolder lines, you should choose a softer lead like “4B” or “6B”.

A No. 2 pencil is towards the middle when it comes to the hardness of lead (graphite) and the darkness of the shade. If a pencil has a number higher than 2 it means it has a harder graphite core, a harder point, and a lighter shade. These pencils are often used by engineers or architects.

Higher numbers indicate a harder lead, which gives you a finer point and crisper lines. Lower numbers indicate a softer lead, which is good for shading. #2 is the Goldilocks of pencils: not too hard, not too soft, and good for pretty much all of your pencil needs.

We prefer the second-generation Apple Pencil because it is even more technologically advanced than the first. The new magnetic clip, wireless charging, and improved palm rejection features make all the difference. And with just $30 between the two versions, we think that the Apple Pencil 2 is an absolute steal.

Here's the deal with the number: it actually tells us how dense the lead in the pencil is. The higher the number, the more dense the lead. For the purposes of a test, a No. 1 pencil is a little too soft, and smudges easily; as you get higher in number, the lead becomes too dense and brittle to write and erase easily.

The F pencil grade means Fine. This pencil is hard which means that it maintains a fine point. What makes a pencil grade harder or softer? The core of a graphite pencil is a mix of graphite and clay filler.

The letter “F” is also used to indicate that the pencil sharpens to a fine point. Historically, pencil makers also use combinations of letters to tell us about the graphite — a pencil marked “HB” is hard and black, a pencil marked “HH” is very hard, and a pencil marked “BBB” is really, really black!

Number 3 pencils, also known as 3H pencils, are harder graphite pencils ideal for technical drawing, drafting, and fine lines. They produce light, precise marks that are easy to erase, making them suitable for detailed work and diagrams.

According to Dictionary.com, early machines that scanned and recorded test scores couldn't properly detect marks made by hard pencils. While No. 1 -- the softest -- pencils were prone to smudging, the No. 2 pencil was the perfect balance of softness and hardness.

How to tell if a pencil is number 2? ›

A pencil's location on the HB graphite grading scale depends on the hardness of its graphite core. The hardness of the graphite core is often marked on the pencil — look for a number (such as “2” “2-1/2” or “3”) — and the higher the number, the harder the writing core and the lighter the mark left on the paper.

Hardness. A #2 pencil is the US designation for an HB pencil, which is a medium-grade pencil. A #1 pencil is softer, so it leaves a darker line, but it wears down faster. In hardness it is between B and 2B, depending on the manufacturer.

Which Pencils Do I Use for Actual Writing? F through 4B. For the best balance of smoothness and legibility, I prefer pencils that fall on the darker side of the “HB” designation, typically a 2B pencil.

The degree of soft black, hard, hard black, and firm are then further classified by numbers, the higher the number the higher the intensity. The 19 degrees of graphite pencil hardness are: 14B, 12B, 10B, 8B, 7B, 6B, 5B, 4B, 3B, 2B, B, HB, F, H, 2H, 3H, 4H, 5H, and 6H.

The No. 2 pencil could be called the Goldilocks of pencils, because it's not too soft and not too hard, making it the preferred choice on that school supply list. PORTLAND, Ore. — School starts in less than a month at area schools and one of the most requested items on the school supply list are those No.

So, a H pencil has a hard lead and a 2h pencils lead is twice hard of the H pencil. Higher the number with H, lighter is the pencil stroke. A 9h pencil's stroke will be very light and the lead will be hardest.

Softer pencils like No. 1s smudge, so they're just impractical to use. Which is how No. 2 pencils became the industry standard.

And, although the common #2 pencil we've all used in school is sufficient to make great drawings, if you want to create the most realistic and nuanced drawings you can, then it's important to use pencils in a variety of lead hardnesses.